The
monument known in antiquity as either the Long Walls of Thrace or the
Anastasian Wall lies 65 km west of Istanbul and stretches from the
Black Sea coast across the peninsula to the coast of the Sea of Marmara
to the west of Silivri. The Wall is part of the additional defences
for Constantinople constructed during the 5th century AD and probably
continued in use until the 7th century.

Originally the Wall was around
56 km long, but less than half of the total length now survives above
ground. It is best preserved in the rolling woodland of the northern
sector where the Wall stands in place up to 4m in height. Associated
with the Wall is a well preserved ditch, outerwork, gates and forts.
As it survives it is the most monumental linear fortification dating
from antiquity in continental Europe, comparable only with Hadrian's
Wall in its complexity and preservation. Recent road construction and
other developments associated with the expansion of Greater Istanbul
are now posing a major threat to the surviving remains.

The
Anastasian Long Wall project is directed by James Crow and Alessandra
Ricci. Fieldwork began in 1994 and the first mapping and survey stage
was completed in 2000, although the directors are still involved in
research in the region as part of the Water Supply of Constantinople
project. This research benefitted considerably from the generous support
and assistance of the Department of Antiquites and Museums in Ankara.

The aims
of Anastasian Wall Project are as follows:

To study and record the
surviving structure of the Wall.

To conduct preliminary
investigations into the aqueducts and water channels surviving in
the vicinity of the Wall, which provided the city's water supply
from the late fourth century onwards.

To examine associated
remains of forts and other structures in the woodland reported in
earlier accounts of the Wall.

To study the settlement
archaeology of the Wall and its environs as part of the hinterland
of Constantinople.

To study the modern landscape
of traditionally coppiced woodland and to integrate this study with
an investigation of the paleo-ecology of the Wall zone.

To develop a conservation
strategy for the Wall and its natural environment in cooperation
with the Turkish Society for Nature Conservation of Istanbul.